Net neutrality turns 1: Here's everything you need to know (FAQ)
The new rules governing an open
Internet reach a milestone, but not everyone is celebrating.
February 25, 20165:00 AM PST
cnet.com
The US government's landmark Net
neutrality rules are about to mark their one-year
anniversary. You'd think proponents of a free and open Internet would mark the
occasion with a victory lap.
Emotions have run high over Net
neutrality. Here, protesters gathered in California in 2014, near where
President Barack Obama was hosting a fundraiser.
It's not that simple.
When the Federal Communications
Commission put the Internet under stricter regulations last
February 26, it wanted to make sure broadband service providers
would treat all Web traffic the same. But the situation is far from settled.
Broadband providers quickly sued the FCC, and the courts are now reviewing the
rules. Those legal decisions will decide how the Internet works.
The future looks different depending
on which side you believe. The FCC says its regulations prevent big businesses
from shutting out competitors and controlling the content we see on our
computers, phones and tablets. The broadband players, including
AT&T and Verizon, say the rules don't encourage them to invest in network
upgrades, which will limit innovation and drive up prices.
Net neutrality wasn't something many
people cared about before June 2014, when comedian John Oliver compared cable companies to the mafia shaking
down regulators to rewrite the rules. Oliver finished his 13-minute rant by
calling on his viewers to flood the FCC with comments supporting an open
Internet. Four million Americans contacted the agency, crashing its servers.
President Barack Obama joined the debate that
November, supporting a plan to reclassify the rules governing broadband. The
three Democratic FCC commissioners pushed for the new rules, while the two
Republican commissioners opposed them.
You're forgiven for not remembering
all the details. It's pretty wonky, after all. To refresh your memory and to
mark the one-year anniversary, we offer this FAQ and a reminder that all our
stories on Net neutrality, including our exclusive interview with FCC Chairman
Tom Wheeler, can be found here.
What is Net neutrality again?
Net neutrality is the idea that all traffic on the Internet should be treated equally.
This means your broadband provider, which controls your access to the Internet,
can't block or slow down the services or applications you use over the Web. It
also means your Internet provider can't create so-called fast lanes that force
companies like Netflix to pay an additional fee to speed up delivery of content
to you.
Sounds reasonable. Why is this
controversial?
Although almost everyone involved
agrees with the basic idea of Net neutrality, theFCC's rules have become a lightning rod for
controversy. That's because the commission, under Wheeler, has reclassified broadband as
a public utility. That change puts broadband providers under some of the same
strict regulations that have governed telephone networks for more than 80
years.
Before the ink even dried on the new
regulations, telephone companies and cable operators banded together to sue the
government, arguing that the FCC doesn't have the authority to make such a
drastic change. They say the new classification lets the FCC impose higher
rates, which will discourage them from building or upgrading networks. The FCC
says it doesn't have any plans to regulate rates or quash innovative business
models. Wheeler said the only reason the agency reclassified broadband was to
make sure it can fight legal challenges it expects from Internet providers.
Why is this a big deal?
If the US Court of Appeals upholds
the FCC's order, broadband providers can't block or slow down your access to
the Internet. They also won't be able to create fast lanes, where companies pay
for priority access to deliver content and services to your home.
If the FCC loses, the agency could
be stripped of its authority and be left unable to determine whether new
business practices will harm consumers. One example is zero-rating. That's when
broadband providers and wireless companies don't count data usage of specific
apps and services against a customer's cap. Net neutrality supporters argue
against the practice, saying it turns broadband providers into Internet
gatekeepers by encouraging consumers to use certain services instead of others.
This, they say, ultimately hurts competition, innovation and consumer choice.
The FCC is currently reviewing offers announced by AT&T, Comcast, Verizon
and T-Mobile.
Where do the rules stand now?
The FCC's rules went into effect in
June. The lawsuit was argued in federal court in December, and we're waiting
for a decision later this spring. The case will be decided before the US Court
of Appeals for the DC Circuit, the same court that struck down the FCC's two
previous attempts at Net neutrality, with one of the same judges.
Will Congress take action?
Right before the FCC's new
regulations passed last year, Republicans led by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.)
pushed for legislation to derail them, but the effort stalled. House
Republicans also attempted to cut off funding needed to implement the rules,
but that effort failed too.
Opponents are re-energized, however.
Earlier this month, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) introduced a bill called the No Rate Regulation of
Broadband Internet Access Act, forbidding the FCC from dictating
how much companies can charge for broadband Net access.
What are the chances of the bill
becoming law?
Net neutrality advocates say we
don't need Kinzinger's legislation. The FCC's chairman has testified before
Congress that the agency has no plans to regulate rates. He has also noted that
the FCC added measures to its regulations that would prevent the commission
from dictating rates in the future.
The bill's real aim, Net neutrality
advocates say, is to strip the FCC of its ability to regulate any unfair
practices on the Internet.
"Under the Kinzinger bill,
broadband providers could try to characterize any and every determination the
FCC makes as a rate regulation," Matt Wood, policy director of the Free
Press Action Fund, a nonprofit devoted to a diversity of voices in media, said in a column published by
Bloomberg BNA.
The bill is still in committee and
is a long way from becoming law.
So will the courts finally provide
some resolution to the Net neutrality debate?
Probably not. Legal experts expect
that any decision, regardless of who wins, will be appealed to the Supreme
Court. And even if the FCC does ultimately get to enforce the regulations, you
can expect more lawsuits attacking how the agency applies them.
That's why no one's breaking into a
victory lap just yet.
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